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Caretaker
' |image= |series= |production=101 (721) |producer(s)= |story= Rick Berman, Michael Piller and Jeri Taylor |script= Michael Piller and Jeri Taylor |director=Winrich Kolbe |imdbref=tt0114530 |guests=Richard Poe as Gul Evek, Josh Clark as Lieutenant Carey, Alicia Coppola as Lieutenant Stadi, Gavan O'Herlihy as Jabin, Armin Shimerman as Quark, Basil Langton as The Caretaker, Angela Paton as Adah, Bruce French as Ocampan Doctor, Jennifer Parsons as Ocampan Nurse, David Selburg as Toscat, Jeff McCarthy as Dr. Fitzgerald, Stan Ivar as Mark Johnson, Scott MacDonald as Lieutenant Rollins and Scott Jaeck as Lt. Commander Cavit |previous_production= |next_production=Parallax |episode=VGR S01E01/E02 |airdate=16 January 1995 |previous_release=Past Tense Part 2 |next_release=Parallax |story_date(s)=Stardate 48315.6 (2371) |previous_story=(VGR) None (Overall) Past Tense Part 2 |next_story=Parallax }} Summary Unhappy with a new treaty, Federation colonists along the Cardassian border have banded together, calling themselves The Maquis they continue to fight the Cardassians. Some consider them heroes, but to the governments of the Federation and the Cardassia, they are outlaws. In the late 24th century, a renegade group known as the Maquis operate outside the law to right what they see as Federation injustices. After infiltrating a Maquis cell to apprise Starfleet of the group's activities, Lieutenant Tuvok, along with the crew of a ship commanded by the Maquis captain Chakotay, disappear in an area of space known as the Badlands. Tuvok's commanding officer, Captain Janeway, leads a mission to find the Vulcan lieutenant, enlisting the aid of Starfleet prisoner Tom Paris, a former Maquis member, to guide her ship, the U.S.S. Voyager NCC-74656, through the Badlands. Considered a traitor by most of Voyager's crew, Paris strikes up a friendship with Ensign Harry Kim, a naive young Starfleet Academy grad. Kim learns that Paris was drummed out of Starfleet after his piloting error caused the deaths of three officers. The outcast joined the ranks of the Maquis, but was soon arrested by Federation authorities. After reaching the Badlands, Voyager encounters an inexplicable phenomenon that sends the ship hurtling to the Delta Quadrant, located 70,000 light years from home. The catapult effect kills a number of crewmembers, including the Chief Medical Officer, who is replaced by an Emergency Medical Hologram (EMH) that attends to the wounded. But the EMH has barely begun his work when the entire crew of Voyager is transported to what appears to be a pastoral farm, populated by friendly humans. But it's only an illusion; the farm is actually the interior of the Array, a huge space station, and the residents are holograms. The crew is imprisoned within a strange laboratory facility, alongside the missing Maquis. After being subjected to a painful examination, the crews of Voyager and the Maquis vessel are returned to their respective ships, docked outside the Array. But two crewpersons are missing: Harry Kim and B'Elanna Torres, the half-Klingon, half-human engineer from the Maquis vessel. Returning to the "farm," Janeway confronts the only remaining inhabitant, an old man playing a banjo. But the man cares nothing about their dilemma and offers them no information about the missing officers. Noting that the Array is sending energy pulses toward the fifth planet of a neighboring system, Janeway sets course in that direction. Far beneath the surface of that planet, an ailing Kim and Torres regain consciousness in a medical facility. But what they're doing there — and why — they have yet to discover. En route to the fifth planet of a neighboring system, Voyager's crew encounters Neelix, a Talaxian scavenger. He explains that the Array has been bringing ships into the region for many months. Neelix guesses that the "Caretaker," who controls the Array, may have sent the missing crewmembers to the Ocampa, a race that lives two miles below the surface of the fifth planet. Neelix volunteers to be their guide and they accept. Meanwhile, Kim and Torres are being cared for in the Ocampa medical facility. Although they now live in a subterranean society, the Ocampa inhabited the planet's surface until it was struck by an environmental disaster 500 years ago. Since that time, they have lived underground, with all their needs provided by the man they refer to as the Caretaker. Beaming down to the planet's surface, Neelix introduces Janeway to the Kazon, a savage alien species that has taken possession of the arid Ocampan world. Janeway asks Jabin, the Kazon leader, if he can help them, but he refuses. Neelix is hoping Jabin will trade Kes, an Ocampan woman he is holding captive, for some of Voyager's precious water. But the Kazon are more interested in obtaining all of Voyager's technology — forcibly. When Jabin tries to take the crew hostage, Neelix helps them escape and beam back to the ship, along with Kes. Kim and Torres persuade an Ocampan nurse to show them a route that could lead to the surface. On Voyager, Kes agrees to lead Janeway and the others through the tunnels to her underground city to search for the pair. As the Array increases the rate of the energy pulses that power the city, Kim and Torres begin their journey, narrowly missing the search party from Voyager. Tuvok theorizes that the increased activity of the Array may indicate that the Caretaker is dying; he is clearly attempting to give them a surplus of power that will sustain the Ocampa after he is gone. The search is complicated by a new turn of events. The Array is now firing a weapon at the planet to seal up all of the energy conduits, the tunnels that provide the only access to the city. This will protect the Ocampans, but prevent the others from escaping. Splitting up, Paris, Neelix and Kes find Kim and Torres, and send them up to Voyager. Then Paris and Neelix go back for Janeway, Tuvok and Chakotay. Chakotay's skepticism towards Paris' loyalty is erased when Paris saves his life. Returning to the Array, Janeway again encounters the old man, whom she realizes is the Caretaker. He explains that he was bringing beings from across the galaxy to the Array in the hopes of finding a compatible species with which he could procreate, thus providing the Ocampa with someone to care for them after he dies. But no species has been a match so far. Janeway tries to convince the Caretaker to send Voyager and the Maquis ship back home, but he refuses. Apparently, the Caretaker wants to destroy the Array so that it won't fall into the invading Kazon's hands. But he dies before he can carry out his plan, and Janeway is left to decide whether to use the Array to get home — which would leave it intact for the Kazon — or to destroy it and save the Ocampa. She chooses what seems to be the only moral option and makes a mortal enemy of the Kazon. With Chakotay's ship destroyed in the battle with the Kazon, Janeway asks the Maquis to become part of Voyager's crew. She also allows Neelix and Kes to stay aboard. With Chakotay her First Officer, Tom Paris reinstated as a Starfleet lieutenant, and Torres and Kim cured by the Emergency Medical Hologram, Janeway and her new crew set course for the long trip home, 70,000 light-years away. Errors and Explanations Internet Movie Database Continuity # After Torres & Kim are rescued on Ocampa, they are beamed directly to Voyager's sick bay, still wearing the clothes given to them by the Ocampan doctors. But when the scene segues back to Voyager's sick bay, Torres is wearing leather civilian clothes and Kim is wearing a uniform. (These clothes had been removed from them on the Caretaker's array.) They could have been recovered from the array when the others were sent back. # Tuvok includes the Ocampan city's energy surplus that will "last at least five years" in the evidence he lists in support of the hypothesis that the Caretaker is dying. However, that information was revealed to Kim and Torres by the nurse who tells them how to access the surface. Nobody told the away team that information. Either they were told off screen - possibly when they first asrrived at the clinc - or Tuvok somehow worked it out. Plot Misfires # The first officer running across the bridge when Janeway gives the brace for impact order. He is arrogant enough to think he can get to a safer position. # Tuvok explains that the Caretaker examined the Voyager's library computer banks to create a suitable holographic environment for the crew to wait in, presenting problems. The environment is centered around Earth, yet many of those kidnapped are not human. Further, it is centered around southern white Americans. Is Dogpatch, USA, really the most comfortable setting for everyone? The caretaker made an assumption based on the large number of humans in the group. # When the Caretaker starts to seal the conduits, the Voyager reports that it is unable to beam up the Away Team through the holes in the shield. This forces the team to find their way outside of the security field, which they do. But then they break through to the surface of the planet with their phasers. Why? They're outside the shield, Voyager should have no trouble locking onto their signals. The transporter lock could be distorted by elements in the rocks. # When Chakotay runs his shuttle into the Kazon Warship, he stays in the ship until the last possible second. When he finally does call to be beamed out, the Kazon ship fires several times at the small craft. But in order to beam out, the shields have to be down. And if the shields are down, how could that beat-up little thing sustain direct hits without exploding? He likely concentrated the shield strength towards the front of his ship, allowing him to be beamed out through a gap in the aft shields. Equipment Malfunctions # Harry's tricorder must be broken. When scanning the barn, he reports that he's found human life signs and a Vulcan's. What about B'Elanna? She's right next to the other Maquis folks, and she definitely isn't human. Her Klingon DNA could be difficult to detect. # The transporter room doorway isn't very courteous to visitors - at least not to Neelix. He walks up to the door, and faces it, but it doesn't open until Tuvok walks up next to Neelix and points to the door. Tuvok may have initiated a temporary restriction on the door opening. Memory Failures # After Paris rescues Chakotay and takes him to sickbay, something odd happens. Chakotay isn't wearing shoes! He had them on when Tom saved his life, and twenty- fourth-century medicine doesn't require disrobing to fix broken limbs, so what happened to them? Perhaps the EMH felt it necessary to conduct a visual examination. Nit Central # Chris Booton on Sunday, November 01, 1998 - 10:54 am: Why can’t the Kazon make water? Doesn't making water simply involve burning hydrogen? ''Ed Jefferson (Ejefferson) on Sunday, May 02, 1999 - 3:26 am:''re: wather out of thin air. Air doesn't just contain hydrogen and oxygen, it actually contains water vapour! ''Seniram''They may not have the means and/or knowledge to extract it. # Anonymous on Sunday, November 01, 1998 - 9:24 pm: Why didn't Captain Janeway just put a time bomb in the Caretaker's array? This way they could use the array to get home and the array will still be destroyed. But if they did this the story ends here, and we won't have a series. Guess the producers overlooked this one.Nicholas Setzer on Monday, November 02, 1998 - 5:44 am: I think that the producers made a grave mistake with this one; Captain Janeway had many options other than destroy the array before using it to get home (some include activate the wave thing that takes you home then just before it sweeps you away, fire the photon torpedos at the array, set the torpedos as mines, and many, many more). Ed Jefferson (Ejefferson) on Sunday, May 02, 1999 - 3:26 am:''re: Not using a timebomb. The Voyager crew probably don't know how to work the array. If they spend too much time figuring it out, then more Kazon may arrive. Also, the Kazon might disarm the bomb before it goes off. ''Seniram There wasn’t enough time – the Kazon were on the verge of seizing the array, so Janeway had no choice. # Richard Williams on Thursday, February 18, 1999 - 2:39 pm: I don’t know if this is the right place for posting a nit in the opening credits, but when Voyager is flying over the planets rings, why do you see a reflection of the ship on the rings? The light is clearly falling on the ship from the top-right, so if anything, Voyager should be casting a shadow. Ian Bland on Thursday, January 21, 1999 - 8:06 pm: Regarding Voyager's reflection on the planet's rings in the opening credits- the albedo of the rings looks pretty high, so the bottom of the ship could be illuminated by reflection. I'm more concerned about the relative scale. Either that's a really small planet, or Voyager's an awful lot bigger than we've been lead to believe! # Chris Thomas on Monday, February 22, 1999 - 3:38 pm: Paris' story about how he ended up in the penal colony has some amazing parallels with the incident his other character was involved with in the TNG episode The First Duty. Cableface on Monday, February 22, 1999 - 6:41 pm: I thought that too, why didn't they just get Locarno from The First Duty. Their stories are virtually identical and they were played by the same actor, so why not? Because Paris is a much better name than Locarno. Jethro on Saturday, January 02, 1999 - 11:35 am: No, because: Locarno appears to be alright at first, but is really a ****** son of a ******. Paris, appears to be a bit of baddie, but underneath he's a nice guy. LUIGI NOVI on Sunday, July 22, 2001 - 5:36 pm: My guess is that the creators decided to make him a different character for two possbile reasons: Royalties would have to be paid to Ronald D. Moore & Naren Shankar, who wrote The First Duty (TNG), where Locarno first appeared. Simply giving the character a different name would instantly save lots of money. The same thing may have occured with T'Pol from ENT, whom sources claimed was originally slated to be a young T'Pau from Amok Time (TOS). Locarno never admitted his responsibility for Josh Albert's death. He was perfectly willing to blame the accident on him, despite the fact that Nick himself engineered the entire thing. Tom Paris, on the other hand, as he told Harry, got away with falsifying the report of his accident, and eventually decided to come forward anyway because his conscience couldn't deal it, demonstrating that was a more morally positive character than Nick, capable of--and more importantly--desirous of, redemption.. # The wave thingy in the Badlands is reminiscent of the Nexus in Generations. The Caretaker may have been inspired by the appearance of the Nexus when creating the displacement wave. # The falling apart walkway involving Chakotay/Paris also reminds me of the gantry breaking apart with Kirk on it in Generations. There was a similar thing in Second Chances with the two Rikers. All the walkways were old, and probably hadn’t been maintained very well, if at all. # The Betazoid officer - can't be sure but I thought I heard someone call her ensign, yet she has two pips on her collar which would make her a lieutenant.Do you mean Stadi? If so, she is definitely a Lieutenant – at least according to the episode cast list on page 7 of the Voyager Companion. # When Neelix is in the bath, we see one of his feet. It looks pretty normal. Yet in a later episode he is barefoot on the holodeck with Paris and Kim and his feet are quite large and are more alienesque. Perhaps the appearance was distorted by the steam? # Maybe I didn't follow this bit - my understanding is the Ocampa occasionally manage to break free to the surface. Here it looks like it is the first time Kes has done this. Has does Neelix meet her then (he doesn't have a transporter) because he can't go underground.Ed Jefferson (Ejefferson) on Sunday, May 02, 1999 - 3:26 am:''re: How does Neelix meets Kes. In the novel 'Pathways' which is probably non-canon, but the story makes sense. He was doing a deal with the Kazon, who kept Kes as their prisoner.''Johnny Veitch on Sunday, May 02, 1999 - 11:03 am:"Mosaic" and "Pathways" have been granted canonicity. (Is that a word?) Events in "Mosaic" are mentioned in several episodes, for instance Deadlock. Seniram IIRC, she had developed a habit of travelling between the underground city and the surface. # Phillip Culley on Wednesday, February 03, 1999 - 10:46 am: When Chakotay beams onto Voyager, the Maquis ship actually carries out the transport, but it uses the 'brand new' Voyager transporter effect, which has never been seen before. Are the Federation this lax that they allow the Maquis the opportunity to steal a new transporter system? Seniran Are you sure it wasn’t Voyager that carried out the transport? # Keith Alan Morgan on Monday, April 19, 1999 - 8:29 am:''The establishing shot only shows stars, then dialogue indicates that the Maquis ship is not even travelling at full impulse, then when they get full impulse it is said that in about 30 seconds they will be in the Badlands. If they were that close (about one and a half million miles away by my calculation) shouldn't we have seen the Badlands in the establishing shot? '''That would depend on the viewing angle.' # If Tom is just an observer, then why is he wearing a Starfleet uniform? Ed Jefferson (Ejefferson) on Sunday, May 02, 1999 - 3:26 am:''re: Tom wearing a Starfleet uniform. As a prisoner, I guess he needs a uniform of some kind, and having him wear a Starfleet uniform makes some sense- maybe the penal colony uniforms are not designed for space travel (!?!) ''Seniram It’s a Starfleet ship on a Starfleet mission! # If Tom was in a penal colony on Earth, then why do we see him taken to DS9 by a shuttle? Since Captain Janeway was on Earth, wouldn't Voyager also be at Earth? The shuttle probably collected him from another ship. # When Voyager starts to leave, a light comes on that illuminates Voyager's name and registry, but doesn't seem to serve any other purpose. (My first thought was that it was some kind of headlight.) This could be a measure to ensure the ship’s identity is visable to anyone that sees it. # Tom says that everyone is accounted for, but they just lost several people in the trip from the Alpha Quadrant. ''Ed Jefferson (Ejefferson) on Sunday, May 02, 1999 - 3:26 am:''re: Tom saying everyone is accounted for. They would still be accounted for if they were dead. # The head Ocampan says that the Caretaker doesn't communicate directly with the Ocampa, then he says that the Caretaker asks them to care for others with this disease. They probably made an educated guess as to why the Caretaker sent those suffering from the disease. # There are no oceans on this planet, but Neelix tells Janeway to scan the large southern continent, but without oceans wouldn't the whole planet be a continent? Neelix is referring to the area that would be the large southern continent if the lower ground surronding it was full of water. # Keith Alan Morgan on Saturday, April 24, 1999 - 8:16 am: So why does the warp only work when the nacelles (wings) are up? Does this somehow disconnect the impulse engines and hook up the warp engines? How is this an advantage? Once the enemy discovers this, they can just block the nacelles from rising and Voyager can't run away at warp. Richie Vest on Saturday, April 24, 1999 - 2:34 pm: Keith Remember the Next Gen episode Force of Nature. The nacelles are designed not to destroy the fabric of space. # Brian Lombard on Saturday, May 29, 1999 - 8:03 pm: How does Voyager beam the Maquis crew off their ship while Voyager's shields are up? Cableface on Friday, June 11, 1999 - 2:40 pm: I read somewhere that the Enterprise-E had technology that could beam through shields. Maybe Voyager had the same. # Nick Angeloni (Nangeloni) on Sunday, September 19, 1999 - 9:34 pm: Why did Voyager leave without clearance from Ops? I'm not sure if we ever saw any episode where DS9 gave clearance for ships to leave, but when the Enterprise-A left Spacedock in Trek VI it had to get clearance to leave. Wouldn't the same rule apply? Seniram They did have clearance – Stadi stated as much just before Voyager moved away from DS9! # LUIGI NOVI (Lnovi) on Thursday, January 04, 2007 - 11:03 pm:''So the Kazon have no water? Hmm; they have weapons, clothing, and spaceships, and presumably subspace communications to bring in reinforcements...but no water. That makes me ask why the heck these guys didn't just fly to the nearest class M planet and load up gallons of water from a fresh water lake or river, or even purify the salt water of an ocean? Using water as a gimmick doesn't work when we're talking about a star-faring race that covers hundreds of light years. '''They may not have the means to do that!' # George on Saturday, January 22, 2000 - 5:42 pm:''Tom Paris is commissioned the rank of lieutenant, not lieutenant junior grade. Yet some later episodes show one gold circle and one black circle on his collar. '''Officers with the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade are routinely addressed as Lieutenant.' # Sophie Hawksworth on Wednesday, May 10, 2000 - 5:23 pm:''Why did the Cartaker send Harry and B'Elanna to the planet for medical treatment when Voyager obviously had better facilities? Force of habit? 'Jwb52z on Thursday, May 11, 2000 - 12:43 am:''Sophie, Tom and B'Elanna were sent there because the Ocampa knew better how to take care of those the Caretaker tested. ''Keith Alan Morgan (Kmorgan) on Saturday, May 13, 2000 - 10:27 pm: What about the timing? I believe Voyager was taken several days after the Maquis, but both are returned to their respective ships at the same time and, presumably, Harry & B'Elanna were sent to the Ocompa at the same time. Shouldn't B'Elanna's disease be more advanced than Harry's? Chris Thomas on Tuesday, May 16, 2000 - 12:40 am: Maybe her half-Klingon heritage gives her greater resistance?' # ''The Undesirable Element on Friday, August 11, 2000 - 2:22 pm: Tuvok says that it would be possible to use the array to get home. Yet the Caretaker said that sending them back is terribly complicated. If it's complicated for a superior lifeform like the Caretaker, how would Janeway and Co. figure it out? The Caretaker obviously didn’t think they were clever enough to work it out. The only reason that Voyager couldn't escape that whatever-it-was that took them to the Delta Quadrant was because the plasma storms of the badlands prevented them from going to warp. This gives the impression that this whatever-it-was travels at sublight speeds. Yet in The Voyager Conspiracy we find out that the Caretaker had brought lots of ships in. (Presumably using the same method) Were all of these ships near plasma storms? Couldn't most other ships get away with warp? Perhaps the pre displacement wave scanning beam disrupted the warp drive? In Sickbay, there's a big hole in the wall in the shape of a console right next to the main biobed. This is presumably the console that exploded and killed the doctor. Does this console ever get repaired? I can't recall ever seeing it again? NarkS on Monday, August 14, 2000 - 10:06 pm: What were the doctor and nurse doing next to a console before it exploded? Checking out the latest sports scores? ''Seniram''They could have been checking the supplies inventory. # I find it hard to believe Chakotay would sacrifice his ship in order to disable a Kazon ship, and then to top it all off say that Janeway is "the captain" and therefore gets to make the important decisions. Doesn't Chakotay have a say? He realises the need for her to remain in command, if only because she is the designated commanding officer of Voyager. Besides, he can offer advice as and when required. # Is it me or does the "bridge" of the maquis ship look like that of a runabout? Is it really that small, and if so, how many maquis could you fit on that ship? A small control room allows more room for supplies ''' # Why did Janeway need those "special" torpedoes to destroy the array? '''The array may be too large and too solidly built for regular torpedoes to result in sufficient damage. # How did the Caretaker "guide" the Ocampa into the underground? Did he set up some holographic projectors? He may have appeared to them. Why didn't he move them to another planet? It may not have been possible. # Where did the staircase come from? Supposedly the caretaker has superior technology. Couldn't he just beam them down there? Beaming may not be possible due to the composition of the rocks # NarkS on Tuesday, August 15, 2000 - 8:54 pm: Paris' flashlight seems to be handheld. What happened to the wrist ones? Surely they would be more useful had he needed to use his hands. The hand held units appear to provide more light. # How do Paris, Kim, Torres, Kes and Neelix climb out of that hole? Did they use a ladder? There doesn't seem to be anything they could easily climb. The bits of rock that jutted out could provide hand and foot holds. # Why doesn't the doctor have an auto-off? Did the people at Starfleet just not think of this? That would increase the risk of the EMH deactivating during a surgical procedure. # Palandine on Wednesday, February 28, 2001 - 8:02 am: B'Elanna's appearance in this episode is MUCH more Klingon than in later seasons. Her forehead ridges are much more prominent and her eyebrows are bushier and lighter in color. She looked more realistic in this episode. I think if a person started watching in later seasons, it would be hard to tell that Torres was supposed to be half Klingon.Jwb52z on Wednesday, February 28, 2001 - 2:17 pm: Palandine, I thought the opposite. I thought her forehead was more fake looking initially. ''Seniram''The changes could be an after effect of the reintergration following the events in Faces. # John A. Lang on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 9:38 pm: Why is the Transporter SFX so different from the Enterprise? It's the same technology! This could be due to an equipment update. # John A. Lang on Wednesday, February 25, 2004 - 7:50 am: In Descent Pt.1 & Pt. 2 (STTNG), we find out that the Borg reside in the Delta Quadrant....so my question is: Why didn't someone say: "Delta Quadrant? Isn't that where the Borg come from?" No doubt if someone mentioned that, Janeway would've used the Warp Drive more often! Darth Sarcasm on Wednesday, February 25, 2004 - 10:52 am: Because space is BIG. Just because a species originates from a particular quadrant doesn't mean they encompass the entirety of that quadrant. Chances are that the Borg was discussed off-screen at some point, but that discussion was not relevant to this episode. LUIGI NOVI on Wednesday, February 25, 2004 - 12:47 pm: Descent Pt.1 & Pt. 2 never established that the Borg came from the Delta Quadrant. # Titanman21 on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 - 6:07 pm: Early in part one, Tom comments to Janeway that he had never seen a Federation ship that could manuever through the plasma storms (in the Badlands). I was under the impression that the Maquis fighters we have seen many times are Federation fighters, weren't some of them used during the Dominion War? No mention was made then of the Maquis joining the fight, so I assumed that they were indeed Starfleet vessels, sounds like Tom is confused. Brian FitzGerald on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 - 8:55 pm: Perhaps he means something as large as a starship and not a scout or fighter. Thande on Wednesday, October 20, 2004 - 6:57 am: And what about the Equinox? It's not that I don't believe it couldn't manoeuvre through the plasma storms (it is, after all, half the size of Voyager) but shouldn't Tom have thought of that? It is, after all, a full-sized starship. Seniram Tom probably hasn't seen Nova class ships like the Equinox, or Defiant class ships, so his comment would be accurate. Wiki users # Mcb359 on Thursday 12 July: Even if they (The Kazon) can’t make water, they have interstellar spaceships, yet they never think to just fly to any other planet and pick up water there! 'That's because they are too stupid to think of that! ' Category:Episodes Category:Voyager